Myth #1 – We’ll Lose Private Insurance
A lady blogger named Rene Thompson, Covington, Kentucky, who writes View from the Sandbox, is the source of the following:
The first myth that I heard concerning this bill was that we would all be forced to use the government sponsored insurance. Think this through – we’re in a recession where we are losing jobs. Do you really think that Congress would do something like that?
Let’s check the bill: (Note: Mrs. Thompson provided the link to the bill but the bill she linked to did not have the bill number on it. I’ve linked to the bill in prior posts to this blog. The Bill is HR 3200. I have also linked to Wikipedia for the persons identified below in Mrs. Thompson’s blog post. I often do that so readers can learn something more about the individuals involved.)
(a) PURPOSE.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The purpose of this division is to provide affordable, quality health care for all Americans and reduce the growth in health care spending.
(2) BUILDING ON CURRENT SYSTEM.—This division achieves this purpose by building on what works in today’s health care system, while repairing the aspects that are broken.
(3) INSURANCE REFORMS.—This division—
(A) enacts strong insurance market reforms;
(B) creates a new Health Insurance Exchange, with a public health insurance option alongside private plans;
(C) includes sliding scale affordability credits; and
(D) initiates shared responsibility among so that all Americans have coverage of essential health benefits.
So, you don’t have to change your insurance if you prefer to keep it. That said, this bill does hold private insurance to a higher standard than is currently held.
SEC. 101. REQUIREMENTS REFORMING HEALTH INSURANCE MARKETPLACE.
PURPOSE.—The purpose of this title is to establish standards to ensure that new health insurance coverage and employment-based health plans that are offered meet standards guaranteeing access to affordable coverage, essential benefits, and other consumer protections.
(b) REQUIREMENTS FOR QUALIFIED HEALTH BENEFITS PLANS.—On or after the first day of Y1, a health benefits plan shall not be a qualified health benefits plan under this division unless the plan meets the applicable requirements of the following subtitles for the type of plan and plan year involved:
(1) Subtitle B (relating to affordable coverage).
(2) Subtitle C (relating to essential benefits).
(3) Subtitle D (relating to consumer protection).
So you get to keep your private insurance if you want it and the government will expect the insurance companies to comply with having affordable coverage, that it provides the essential benefits and they can’t cut your coverage due to pre-existing conditions.
Where did the myth come from? It started with a study from the which has been quoted by Republican Senators on the Senate Finance Committee. The study was funded by the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association and Premera Blue Cross.
Now how willing do you think the major insurance companies would be to deal with those restrictions?
Think expecting them to hold to higher standards and not undercut sick people might cut into their profits?
And the nine Senators would brought up the study?
Chuck Grassley, who has received $907,724 from the insurance companies. (Iowa, according to 2006/2007 statistics, has 291,009 citizens without healthcare.)
Orrin Hatch, who has received $669,057 from the insurance companies. (Utah, according to 2006/2007 statistics, has 391,392 citizens without healthcare.**)
Jon Kyl, who has received $886,120 from the insurance companies. (Arizona, according to 2006/2007 statistics, has 1,237,322 citizens without healthcare.**)
Jim Bunning, who has received $794,499 from the insurance companies. (Kentucky, according to 2006/2007 statistics, has 604,929 citizens without healthcare.*)
Mike Crapo, who has received $415,932 from the insurance companies. (Idaho, according to 2006/2007 statistics, has 217,759 citizens without healthcare.*)
Pat Roberts, who has received $297,092 from the insurance companies. (Kansas, according to 2006/2007 statistics, has 340,373 citizens without healthcare.*)
John Ensign, who has received $624,466 from the insurance companies. (Nevada, according to 2006/2007 statistics, has 468,808 citizens without healthcare.**)
Mike Enzi, who has received $239,953 from the insurance companies. (Nevada, see above)
John Cornyn, who has received $564,053 from the insurance companies. (Texas, according to 2006/2007 statistics, has 5,832,884 citizens without healthcare.***)
* Uninsured over 10% of the state’s population
** Uninsured over 15% of the state’s population
*** Uninsured over 20% of the state’s population
Now, since every one of these Senators makes more from the insurance companies than they do from what we pay them, where you you think their loyalty lies?
Myth #2 – Democrats are rushing this through
You usually hear this one from younger Conservatives who aren’t as familiar with the history of health care reform. In fact, the issue of health care reform has been around for at least 50 years. My own mother, G-d rest her soul, lost a security clearance with the Navy due to believing in what was called at the time, socialized medicine. She grew up in a coal mining town in the mountains of Kentucky during the waning years after the Depression. Even as she moved out of mountains in order for a better life for herself, she wanted better for those who remained.
In more recent times, it was brought up during the Clinton Administration.
So, it’s not as though this issue suddenly sprang to mind.
It has, though, taken on more urgency since the Bush-created recession. As more and more jobs were lost, more and more families have been forced to go without health care coverage. During the span of Congress’s three week vacation 43,250 people will lose their health insurance coverage, 53,507 people will file for bankruptcy because they can’t pay their medical bills, and 1,265 people will die because they lack coverage.
I don’t know about you but twelve hundred people dying feels like a reason for urgency.
Certainly the Republicans passed legislation through quickly when we lost 3000 Americans – you remember, the Patriot Act?
Myth # 3 – Bill Want to Kill Seniors!
If you listen to the pundits, the Congress of the United States want to pressure seniors to enter hospices and commit suicide.
How terrible!
How obscene!
And they actually put it in a bill before Congress!
Or did they?
Let’s check the bill:
In Section 1223 it states:
‘‘Advance Care Planning Consultation
‘‘(hhh)(1) Subject to paragraphs (3) and (4), the term ‘advance care planning consultation’ means a consultation between the individual and a practitioner described in paragraph (2) regarding advance care planning, if, subject to paragraph (3), the individual involved has not had such a consultation within the last 5 years. Such consultation shall include the following:
‘‘(A) An explanation by the practitioner of advance care planning, including key questions and considerations, important steps, and suggested people to talk to.
‘‘(B) An explanation by the practitioner of advance directives, including living wills and durable powers of attorney, and their uses.
‘‘(C) An explanation by the practitioner of the role and responsibilities of a health care proxy.
‘‘(D) The provision by the practitioner of a list of national and State-specific resources to assist consumers and their families with advance care planning, including the national toll-free hotline, the advance care planning clearinghouses, and State legal service organizations (including those funded through the Older Americans Act of 1965).
‘‘(E) An explanation by the practitioner of the continuum of end-of-life services and supports available, including palliative care and hospice, and benefits for such services and supports that are available under this title.
‘‘(F)(i) Subject to clause (ii), an explanation of orders regarding life sustaining treatment or similar orders, which shall include—
‘‘(I) the reasons why the development of such an order is beneficial to the individual and the individual’s family and the reasons why such an order should be updated periodically as the health of the individual changes;
‘‘(II) the information needed for an individual or legal surrogate to make informed decisions regarding the completion of such an order; and
‘‘(III) the identification of resources that an individual may use to determine the requirements of the State in which such individual resides so that the treatment wishes of that individual will be carried out if the individual is unable to communicate those wishes, including requirements regarding the designation of a surrogate decision maker (also known as a health care proxy).
In short, the elderly are being given the option to receive legal and medical information on living wills, power of attorney and palliative care every five years. This is the same information that family physicians, hospital social workers and family attorneys give seniors all the time, unfortunately, often when a serious illness has already occurred. As the bill states this would give patients a chance to get the information prior to a serious illness and the chance to update it every five years as the senior’s situation changes.
Now that’s quite a bit different than pressuring elders to kill themselves, isn’t it?
Which makes more sense?
The suggestion that elders would be killed has been propagated by House Republican Leader, John Boehner, and Thaddeus McCotter, the Republican Policy Committee Chairman. John Boehner, if the Republicans could gain the House, would gain an awful lot of power, so there’s a political power gain to make up such a myth. This also benefits Mr. McCotter.
There is also the $113,300 that Mr. Boehner received from the insurance company, so there’s a financial consideration.
Myth # 4 Mandatory Sex Change
Oh, please.
I mean really.
I haven’t tracked down where this piece of dreck originated but I think it’s the illegitimate child of the issue neocons have concerning being involved in other people’s lives. They don’t want folks getting sex changes, abortions or birth control on their dime, while at the same time they get their Viagra so they will be ready for their dates to go hiking through the Appalachian trail with their soul mates. [Sorry for the snarky remark, but this is freaking ridiculous when we’re dealing with life and death and these folks can’t get their minds out of other people’s bedrooms.]
If you have any of the other myths you want covered, send me a note and I’ll be glad to research them.
Remember, this is too important to leave to myths, rumors and dreck.
Get the information, ask yourself where the information came from and then research the person saying it. If something sounds bizarre (Such as Congress wanting to kill elders) and it’s coming out of the mouth of someone being paid by the insurance companies, you have to ask yourself, do I believe someone whose willing to lie to me for money?
That is the end of Mrs. Thompson’s blog post. I thought it was helpful in sorting through all the misleading things being flung around at the town hall meetings, emails, and conservative blog posts. Half the battle is understanding what is being proposed in Congress and then making up your own mind about which way you want it all to go, then speaking up to your Senator or Congresspersons and tell them. If you don’t then you have no reason to complain if it doesn’t turn out your way.
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